Story and Photos: Haley Mullenix
This past Friday (10/6), The Band Camino brought their “Screaming in the Dark Tour” to Kansas City! The Band Camino is out supporting their sophomore album, The Dark which was released in August. Joining them to celebrate was The Wldlfe and Bad Suns.
I’m always excited when a band plays here at The Midland theater, because although it's a bit unassuming on the outside, it’s incredibly beautiful and HUGE on the inside. With a 3,000 capacity, this show was packed!
Starting the night off, The Wldlfe was first to the stage. This three piece out of Indianapolis is fronted by Jansen Hogan with his younger brother Carson Hogan on guitar and Jack Crane on bass. Their indie-pop sound with a touch of electropop had the crowd dancing and jumping around. Oftentimes the crowd at shows isn’t too familiar with openers but this crowd did their homework! Not one act went without a little audience participation, as they sang the lyrics back and clapped along.
The Wldlfe’s most recent release Goodbye To All Of That, 2023 which dropped in March prefaced their own headlining tour which sold out all 10 stops! As well as a stop at Bonnaroo where they played the Who Stage, who’s alumni includes artists like Mac Demarco, Walk The Moon and Portugal The Man! They brought a great energy to the stage and started the night off right.
Next up was Bad Suns! I listened to this band back in high school so it’s always a fun time to sing along with a band you like from the pit! Lead singer Christo Bowman got up close and personal talking directly to some audience members making sure everyone was alright and ready for their set. On bass was Gavin Bennet and on drums they had Miles Morris.
Bad Suns have a great sound that doesn’t quite fit in one particular box. They seem to draw inspo occasionally from punk, but also toe that same electro-pop sound that The Wldlfe plays with. Their look is also a cool sort of mix of “cosmic-Y2K” for their current era that I can’t help but think of David Bowie when I see. This new era starts with their latest single release, “The One I Used To Love” with an accompanying music video. Overall Bad Suns are great performers with lots of energy, and if you like indie-rock music like The Strokes, Surf Curse, Two Door Cinema, etc they’ll definitely have something for you!
Ending the night was of course, The Band Camino! The stage was set with black lights, and their paint splattered gear and risers began to glow in the darkness. The band made their way out, consisting of Jeffery Jordan, Spencer Stewart both of which are on vocals and guitar, as well as Garrison Burgess on drums. The band got their start in Memphis back in 2015 releasing their first EP a year later. Now on their sophomore album The Dark, the band have toured all over North America and Europe and played Bonnaroo as well!
Their sound could also be described as that indie/electro-pop that we heard earlier in the night. Their set was filled with pops of color and a laser light show throughout that had the crowd dancing all the way into the back halls! The Band Camino brought a great night of revelry to Kansas City, and I’m excited to see them back. Be sure to check all these wonderful artists out, and stay up to date to catch them near you!
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The Band Camino
